February Round Up

So, not sure who or if anyone still reads this blog - but for those of you keeping track of the Murrays - February 2012 proved to be one hell of a month. And even if no one reads this, I will consider this my journal entry. And I know - there are still 5 days left... but I pray they get better than how the beginning of the month went. I have to be honest, I can write this now - because we have survived what is post-tonsilectomy/adenoidectomy hell - combined with RSV. Yes. Nurses - if you are reading this... ding ding ding... we experienced RSV. :) AWESOME. And for those who do not know RSV - well it is pretty much something you hope will never happen to your children - a nice respitory virus that cannot really be cured by medicine, it can only work its way out of your child on its own - as you sit there and watch your child struggle to breathe. Pretty sweet, right?

Our story goes like this:
- Jan 2, 2012: Maggie has swallow study - she has giant tonsils. Recommendation: get them removed, but check in with ENT doctor first.
- Jan 23, 2012: Maggie goes to pedi after days of hacking cough - gets put on amoxicilin for weak strain of bronchitis. Pedi notes: she has giant tonsils.
- Jan 26, 2012: Maggie meets with ENT doc (Dr. Watters) - confirms giant tonsils and giant adenoids. Tells us best to remove them within the next 6-8 weeks.
- Jan 27, 2012: Doc office calls to schedule: they have following Friday, Feb 3rd available. So, we dive in head first.
- Feb 2, 2012: Post-op at Children's for 3 hours. Maggie is on her last day of amox, and her lungs sound good. She should be set for surgery.
- Feb 3, 2012: Maggie's lungs are checked and sound good by anethisialogy (spelling!) and surgery is a go. Phil goes with her to put her to sleep, and they get the entire operating room to sing wheels on the bus to get Maggie to calm down. Surgery is a success. Surgeon lets us know her tonsils were enormous and her adenoids were blocking about 60% of her airway. Wow. So, she goes into post-recovery where she sleeps off the morphine for a few hours and wakes up crazy quiet and groggy and NOT interested in drinking. :) Let the games begin. We get traansferred up to 10 West where we share a room with another tonsilectomy child. We force Maggie to drink water with the pink nosey cups - and by 9 she starts on her first italian ice. Success. (Thanks also to Nana Murray's iPad). The night is long as drugs come every three hours - and this is what we have to look forward over the next 14 days. Fighting to drink... but she does her best - and we get the clearance on Saturday at 2pm to leave. I truly thought we were going to have to stay again, but she ate a little oatmeal, a little yogurt and another italian ice that morning, plus tons of water - so away we went. Yet, waiting at home was a very wheezy Sam. So, got home and turned around and went to the pedi. Pretty much, they took one look at him, and looked at me and said "I am going to give him a nebulizer treatment with albuterol, if he doesn't get a higher oxygen stat, I am getting an ambulance here and sending you to the ER, if his oxygen does come up, you are getting into your car and going to the ER." I cried. What else could you do on no sleep holding a sick sad Sam? Well, his oxygen went up, we put him in the car, raced home, grabbed a few things and took off to the Newton Wellesley ER. He was treated with more albuterol and had a chest xray which showed no sign of pneumonia, but they told us it was our decision to stay overnight or go home - and check in again tomorrow. So, Phil stayed with Sam - they eventually checked into a room on the 6th floor at 12:30am. LONG DAY. Meanwhile, back at our house, I stayed with PJ and patient Maggie. Who did not enjoy being woken up at 12 or 3 for meds. She was a trooper though.
Feb 4, 2012: Maggie hates drinking, but will suck it up a little. A LITTLE. Sam, meanwhile, is being "treated" for bronchilitis - which is bronchitis in little lungs and is a strain of RSV. They were thinking Sun was day 5 which is the WORST - but no one knows for sure. He and Phil watched the superbowl from the hospital. By the way - he is on an IV since he will not drink his bottles or eat.
Feb 5, 2012: Sam is still bad. Maggie still hates food. Great. We are watching PJ very closely. They believe since he is Sam's twin - only time will tell when he gets it.
Feb 6, 2012: Maggie is a mess. We go to the pedi - she has an ear infection. Amox is back. Sam looks a little better. PJ has a cold. In an effort to also watch out for Maggie's new cough - she is given albuterol. It hurts to hear such a mean cough, and know her throat is already killing her.
Feb 7, 2012: Maggie thinks solids are the devil. And she thinks her mom is too, for pouring water down her throat. This is hell. PJ is starting to run a factory out of his nose. In a slight turn of events - Sam gets released at 4pm for good behavior and bottle drinking. He goes home on albuterol.
Feb 8, 2012: Take Sam to the pedi for a follow up from being released from NWH. He looks better... but not awesome. Keep up the albuterol and keep trying to feed him. Maggie ate a little yogurt and pudding. But she still hates drinking. Has learned to stick her tongue out as you put the cup to her mouth, so instead of the water going in her mouth it pours all over her. PJ was starting to sound worse, and I don't want another hospital visit, so we go ack to the pedi in the afternoon, and PJ has a double ear infection! Amox for PJ!
Feb 9, 2012: Sam is breathing fast and sounds a bit wheezy, so we go back to the pedi. Sam has an ear infection. Amox for Sam. Maggie is eating a little and drinking thickened liquids - but is still in pain. We also learn that a child who gets a tonsilectomy typically loses 3-4 pounds. Oye. This isn't great news, when you have spent the past two years trying to catch up her growth. ;)
Feb 10, 2012: PJ goes to the pedi - his lungs are good. Still has ear infections, but looking a little better. Maggie is getting worse. And they say days 7-11 of recovery are the worst since the scabs are peeling off in their throat. So, Maggie is definitely showing signs of this as she absolutely fights alllllll liquids. Feeling like the worst mom of the year as I throw water down her throat and spray tylenol into her mouth trying to make her understand that this will help her. Its like all feeding therapy has flown out the window. Sam is laughing and eating. One bright light.
Feb 11, 2012: Maggie still hates all food and drink. But we have made small strides. We have introduced her to building her own pudding parfaits in champagne flutes. Maggie likes this and starts to eat a couple. Fancy. Boys are OK, but still not great eaters.
Feb 12, 2012: Sam goes to pedi for check up - and he has a double ear infection, so he gets a new antibiotic. Maggie is eating more parfaits made with yogurt, as well. PJ is hanging in there.
Feb 13, 2012: Maggie eats more pudding and yogurt, but still not pleasant to give liquids and drugs. This is crazy. It has to get better is all I can hope. Oh - and I haven't mentioned this, but she hasn't been sleeping through the night either - due to drugs and being uncomfortable.
Feb 14-17, 2012: Everyone starts to get on the mend. Sleeping hasn't gotten better, but we are working on that. Maggie survived the 14 days and started eating some "hard" food on Feb 18th.
What to start to ease Maggie back into hard food? M&Ms.

We are still working on Maggie and foods - but she is getting better - still difficult. But hopefully we are turning around and she is going to start loving food and drinks and will grow grow grow. The difficulty I have seen with her versus other kids with this surgery - is that she was a stinky drinker to start, so this made recovery all the more challenging. But she is getting better, thank goodness. And she doesn't hate us, which is a major bonus.

Sam and PJ are back to eating a lot and drinking a lot. They need to rub off on Maggie - and I think they will soon - since it seems like the boys like to go towards Maggie's foods. Not that they are eating that stuff yet, but they soon will be - and Maggie better watch out, beacuse Sam and PJ are going to be little food monsters, I am sure of it. :) Now we just need to work on them sleeping through the night.

Ok - this was a major journal-like entry. Not sure if you read the whole thing, but now I have documented the "fun" that is a tonsilectomy/adenoidectomy - and I hope Sam and PJ will not need this surgery (and if they do need it - please let them be better eaters/drinkers than Maggie)! :)